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Coin magic is the manipulating of coins to entertain audiences. Because coins are small, most coin tricks are considered close-up magic or table magic, as the audience must be close to the performer to see the effects. Though stage conjurers generally do not use coin effects, coin magic is sometimes performed onstage using large coins. In a different type of performance setting, a close-up coin magician will use a large video projector so the audience can see the magic on a big screen. Coin magic is generally considered harder to master than other close-up techniques such as card magic, as it requires great skill and grace to perform convincingly, and this requires much practice to acquire.
Jeff McBride, also known as "Magnus", is an American magician and magic instructor. He is known for his sleight of hand skills and specializes in the manipulation of playing cards, coins, and other small objects. His stage performances blend elements of kabuki, a Japanese theater form, with traditional conjuring. He has been recognized by the Academy of Magical Arts, the Society of American Magicians, and the International Federation of Magic Societies. He has also has set several Guinness World Records.
Tony Slydini, simply known as Slydini, was a world-renowned magician. His mastery, expertise, originality and innovative approach to close-up artistry magic, earned him a legendary reputation in the magic world. He traveled the world performing for the public as well as performing and lecturing fellow magicians. As a result, he served as an inspiration to generations of well-known magicians, celebrities and entertainers, including Doug Henning, Dick Cavett, Bill Bixby, Ricky Jay, David Copperfield and countless others. Although he was best known as a master of close-up artistry, he continually demonstrated an extraordinary performing ability and during his lifetime was responsible for a long series of books, films and publications highlighting his mastery of the magical crafts. For his work, he received the highest honors that his profession could bestow, including both the coveted Masters Fellowship Award and Performing Fellowship Award from the Academy of Magical Arts. During his lifetime, Tony Slydini was inducted into the Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame as a Living Legend.
Jeff Sheridan is an American magician who started his career by specializing in street magic. Sheridan began working in New York City around 1967. He studied briefly at the School of the Visual Arts in NYC in the late 1960s. He authored the 1977 book, Street Magic, An Illustrated History of Wandering Magicians and Their Conjuring Arts. The book was coauthored by Edward Claflin.
Paul Draper is an anthropologist, academic, and an award-winning mentalist, magician, and film maker. As an anthropologist and communications expert specializing in the cognitive science of religious beliefs, he has lectured at fortune 500 companies and universities. As the creator of the show Mental Mysteries, Draper blends his academic background as an anthropologist and communications expert with the arts of mentalism and magic. A decade into his magic career, he received the Merlin Award for his work as a corporate entertainer. Draper has been described as a pioneer in the field of live online magic shows, regularly performing live streaming shows during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic with viewing audiences of thousands of people.
A magic convention is a gathering of professional magicians, magical hobbyists, dealers, collectors of magical apparatus, books and ephemera, and other students of the art of magic. It provides a place for lectures of subjects related to the craft, as well as a series of sample performances of noted or innovative techniques. Many conventions also hold competitions to judge who excels at a particular style, and present awards in various categories such as sleight of hand, card tricks, mentalism, and stage illusions. The largest magic convention is The Blackpool Magician's Convention which is attended by over 3,500 magicians.
Lee Asher is a close-up magician noted for originating new card tricks and hypnotic sleight of hand moves. He is considered an expert in playing cards, and as a collector is especially known for his work with 52 Plus Joker, the American Playing Card Collectors Club, of which he is the serving President. He has served as a magic consultant for professional magicians such as Greg Frewin.
John Max Thompson was an American comedian and Las Vegas illusionist who performed under the stage name The Great Tomsoni with his wife, Pamela Hayes. They had a comedic slapstick act with the well-dressed Thompson and his gum-popping assistant, Pam, performing illusions while enduring a series of mishaps. Within the magician community, Tomsoni was considered a virtuoso, widely known as a mentor and teacher of magic, and a creator of tricks, as opposed to simply a performer. He worked behind the scenes with magicians such as Penn and Teller, Lance Burton, Criss Angel and Mat Franco. In 1999, he was awarded one of the highest honors in the magician community, a Masters Fellowship with the Academy of Magical Arts. January 30, 2020, Showtime released a documentary about Thompson written and directed by Emery Emery called Gambler's Ballad: The Legend of Johnny Thompson.
Madren Elbern "John" Calvert was an American magician and film actor. He performed on stage for eight decades both in the United States and worldwide. Siegfried & Roy cited him as an inspiration, and Bess Houdini said that he was second only to Harry Houdini in "play(ing) the part of a magician."
Whit "Pop" Haydn is an American magician, and the winner of seven performing awards from the Academy of Magical Arts. He has been nominated by his fellow members for "Magician of the Year" in Close-Up, Parlor and Stage, Bar and Lecturer more than thirty times. In February 2006, he also became Vice-President of that organization, and served for four years in that capacity.
Daniel Sylvester Battagline, also known as Sylvester The Jester, is an American magician, best known for playing a cartoon character who comes to life. He has had hundreds of stage and television appearances, including NBC’s "World's Wildest Magic," ABC’s "Champions of Magic III", Jerry Lewis's Muscular Dystrophy Telethon and The Discovery Channel’s "More Science of Magic." He has performed in multiple Las Vegas shows including opening for The Amazing Johnathan, and appearing at Caesar’s Magical Empire. He also produces a series of magic products, and has been credited with creating the illustrations for various magic publications, such as the cover for The Amazing Johnathan's Every Trick in the Book, and the poster for John Carney's "Mr. Mysto" act. In 1996, he also created a prop for the television show, "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch." He has been featured on the cover of several magic and culture-related magazines, such as the September 1998 issue of Magic.
Kevin James is an American magician, known for creating several unique magical effects, such as the "Floating Rose" which is performed by David Copperfield.
David Stone is a French actor, writer, lecturer, producer and magician specialized in close-up magic and coin magic.
David Penn is a corporate English magician from Northampton. He has been seen in the UK on four major TV series including The Sorcerer's Apprentice on BBC1, The Sorcerer's Apprentice Extra on BBC2, Freaky on Channel 4 and Astounding Celebrities on ITV1. He reached the live semi -finals of Britain's Got Talent on ITV1. He has been described in The Daily Telegraph as "one of the country's leading illusionists".
Daryl Easton, known professionally as Daryl and born Daryl Martinez, was an American magician based in Las Vegas. In his marketing he used the self-proclaimed title of "The Magician's Magician". Daryl usually went by his forename only.
Sophie Evans is an English magician who lives and works mainly in Las Vegas. She works regularly at the famous Hollywood Magic Castle, in the close-up room and the parlor, as well as onstage in the Palace. An international award-winning magician, she took the coveted Closeup Award in Australia in the mid-1990s, becoming the first woman ever to win an international award for close-up magic. She is best known in England for her work on the BBC's "Sorcerers Apprentice" magical TV series for children.
Ariann Black is a magician based in Las Vegas, Nevada. She has headlined her own show in Vegas and appeared on a number of national and international television shows. She is known in the magic world for her efforts to encourage and promote other female performers. She was voted Female Magician of the Year in 2004 and International Female Magician of the Year in 2008 & 2009. most recently Ariann was awarded "Magician of the Year by the International Conclave of Illusionists.
John Lovick is an American magician, writer, and director. Since the 1990s he has performed as a magician throughout the United States and Canada, as well as England, Australia, New Zealand, and Malaysia.
Mat Franco is an American magician best known for his personality driven, skill-based sleight of hand magic. He gained fame as the first magician to win America's Got Talent in the show’s ninth season. Franco went on to produce and star in his own primetime TV specials on NBC, Mat Franco’s Got Magic. In 2015 he created and debuted his live stage show in Las Vegas, Mat Franco - Magic Reinvented Nightly, and he is currently headlining at The LINQ Hotel + Experience at the Mat Franco Theater. In addition to winning "Best Magic Show" at the Best of Vegas Awards, Franco's live production is the top-rated magic show in Las Vegas according to Billboard.com in 2021.
Xavier Mortimer, is a magician and variety performer from the South of France. A winner of multiple awards, he has appeared on Penn & Teller: Fool Us, America's Got Talent, Masters of Illusion, Plus Grand Cabaret du Monde, and The Next Great Magician on ITV. Xavier lives in Las Vegas and performs his resident show at Bally's Las Vegas.